Ad/Hd Research Paper

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The Over Diagnosis of AD/HD in School Age Children Samantha K. Hanson Georgian Court University Abstract For this paper I researched the ways that children and adolescents are diagnosed with AD/HD and if there if the reason for the current rise in diagnosis are actually due to an increase of children suffering from this disorder. What I found was that many researchers are saying that children are being wrongfully diagnosed and many may be suffering from underlying disorders. I also found out that the sex of the child as well as the sex of the psychologist or psychiatrist plays a very big role in the diagnosis. Using the DSM I-V I researched what exactly qualifies a child to have AD/HD and also how many other disorders have the same…show more content…
Although both of these disorders share many of the same symptoms of inattention or hyperactivity-impulsivity it does not meet the criteria for AD/HD (APA 2000). As defined by the DMV-IV Conduct Disorder is “a repetitive and persistent pattern of behavior in which the basic rights of others or major age-appropriate societal norms or rules are violated, as manifested by the presence of three or more of the following criteria in the past 12 months, which at least one criterion is present in the past 6 months (APA 2000)..” The criteria needed for a diagnosis of Conduct Disorder are aggression to people or animals, destruction of property, deceitfulness or theft and serious violations of rules. Also the disturbance in behavior must cause significant impairment in social academic or occupational functioning(APA 2000). When first hearing what is needed to have Conduct Disorder is does not sound like something that can be easily confused with AD/HD, however, if one looks closely at the symptoms there are many that overlap. Both AD/HD and Conduct disorder list difficulty following rules as one of their criteria (Lee, 2012). In mild cases of Conduct Disorder it can be very easily confused with a child who is suffering from AD/HD. A child who is constantly calling out, up and out of their seat and trouble controlling themselves can look as though they are suffering from AD/HD but if they psychologist or…show more content…
That however has been proven untrue. Some parents are simply looking for reasons to medicate their children so that they do not have to parent them. This is when it becomes increasingly important to make sure that they child in question fits the criteria for what is needed for an AD/HD diagnosis. Contrary to what many believe poor parenting is not a cause of AD/HD. In addition to that playing video games, too much sugar, fast past lifestyle and lack of self control are also invalid causes of AD/HD. However, heredity, brain deficiencies and other biological causes are reasons why some children have AD/HD. Prenatal factors such as alcohol consumption or smoking while pregnant can also cause AD/HD. Brain deficiencies can be defined as damages to the frontal lobes which controls cognitive, emotional and motor responses, the cerebellum which controls motor planning, motivation and behavioral inhibition and/or basal ganglia which also controls behavioral inhibition. Once it is seen how AD/HD occurs in children it is very clear to see why they have as much trouble as they do with focusing in

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